


Pieces of faith

by elveataur-writes (madswritings)



Category: Preacher (TV)
Genre: F/M, very mild fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-09
Updated: 2017-10-09
Packaged: 2019-01-15 05:52:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12315033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madswritings/pseuds/elveataur-writes
Summary: When your neighbor, a nice elderly lady, asks you to go to Sunday's sermon so you could retell her what was said while she's absent, you go but not very willingly. Yet when you meet the preacher you find it easier to open up than you expected.





	Pieces of faith

**Author's Note:**

> This is a pseud for all my old works that were written on different blogs as I moved around Tumblr in the span of about 6 years.  
> All works are not re-read or edited. This pseud is a storage account for old fics I have.  
> My main writing account on Tumblr is now madswritings.tumblr.com

You open the windows and smile. The weather is sunny but for the last seven days the weather was always sunny so you’re not surprised. You start to believe that sun is always shining in Annville. You look around looking at other houses in your street, the children playing in one of the front yards and inhale that smell that you can’t really smell in the big city. You close your eyes still while holding the window frames.  
“Well hello there neighbor.” A voice suddenly startles you and your eyes shoot open. You see an elderly lady in front of you. She’s wearing a loose summer dress and a big sun hat. She’s smiling to you.  
“Oh, hello.” You respond and finally let go of the window frames. You then remember to smile. “I guess we’re neighbors then.” You add after a pause.  
“Yes we are. But, my dear, can you come outside?” The lady asks and you remain silent for a while, then smile to her again.  
“Of course.” You say as pleasantly as you can. Then you move from the window. While you walk to the front door avoiding still unpacked boxes in your path you think that at least neighbors on one side will be calm at night. That’s why you came here, to experience the calmness instead of a city’s loudness from which you already feel tired.  
When you exit the lady is already waiting for you by your front door. She’s still smiling and it makes you respond to her the same.  
“How can I help you?” You ask and lady steps closer, then reaches out and takes your hands.  
“I’m going to visit my grandson. My son is here to pick me up.” She cocks her head to one side and you notice an old dusty car in front of a house next to yours. You also see a man in his forties sitting inside. You assume it’s her son. “I wanted to go the church today as its Sunday and all, but my Henry is not patient at all.” The lady sighs and you can understand her. Your mother was a religious person too. “Anyway, before I start rambling, maybe you could later tell me what sermon today was?” She asks still with never-dying smile. “You were going to church anyway, right?”  
You almost panic. You’re not religious. Not after your mother died twisted in pain from stage 4 cancer. The memory strikes you painfully but you squeeze out yet another smile to which you already lost count.  
“Well yes.” You answer slowly. You can’t disappoint this elderly lady, she’s looking at you with such neighborly love and you know she doesn’t expect you to refuse her. “But I don’t know where the church is.” You still try to wiggle your way out of this but lady just chuckles and wave her hand.  
“You are never lost in Annville, my dear.” She says and turns to point the direction. “Just go straight this road until you notice a sign. It’s All Saint’s Church, my dear. Then just turn to the left. And you’re there.” Lady turns to you. “Is it clear or I should ask my Henry to explain it to you better?”  
“No, it’s not necessary.” You wave your hands not really wanting to meet Henry. “I will go.” You promise and the Lady nods as a thank you gesture.  
“You’re such a good girl, Y/N.”  
You pause surprised.  
“How do you know my name?”  
“How can I not know my new neighbor’s name?” Lady chuckles again. “Just call me Beth.” She adds. “Well I have to go. I can feel Henry already being impatient.”   
And it’s true. Henry is already smoking his second cigarette (at least that’s how much you counted while Beth was talking) and is glancing in your general direction almost every 5 seconds.  
“Maybe it’s for the best.” You respond with a smile and Beth nods.  
“Thought so. I will come over once I’m back, is it alright?” She already knows that you can’t refuse so without waiting for an answer she turns to go. “See you later, Y/N!” She gives you a little wave and goes to her son. You watch her climb into the car and drive away.  
“What I got myself into.” You sigh as you turn to get back inside. You don’t really want to spend two hours in church on Sunday.  
________________________________________  
You sit in the pew not really listening to what preacher is saying. You are actually examining him in silence. There are not many people today. And if there are not many people on Sundays you doubt this church ever is full. But the preacher, whose name you don’t know yet because everyone is calling him just preacher, is quite interesting. He looks young for being a preacher but maybe that’s only because all priests and preachers you have seen while you lived in the city were old and 70% of them were perverted. Talking about stereotypes, right.  
He, preacher, doesn’t look like usual preacher or at least the ones you’ve met in your life as a believer. He has this Texas look on him and you can’t deny it. You had a glance of his boots and it made you smile. Sure no other preacher you saw wore anything like this. You almost burst out laughing. There’s this thing that no matter how strongly you believe sometimes even the smallest thing is funny and it becomes even funnier because you can’t really laugh during a sermon.  
After you finally calm down the sermon is at its end and only now you remember that you promised Beth to tell what it was about. You curse in your mind and wait for everyone to leave the church. Preacher is still by the alter, tidying it up in silence while woman, who apparently is church’s organist, is going through her purse.  
You stand up and walk to the altar then clear your throat.  
“Excuse me, do you have a minute?” You ask and a woman looks at you curiously. Preacher glances at her and nods then turns to you.  
“Sure.” He smiles and walks around the altar, when with gentle wrap around your shoulders he leads you back to the pews and sits down when you do it first. “So what’s bothering you?” He asks when the woman leaves and you manage to squeeze out a smile.  
“I know it might sound rude, but…” You inhale not knowing how the preacher will react. “Can you summarize today’s sermon for me?”   
Preacher frowns not understanding.  
“But you were here the whole time.” He says and you smile even wider feeling silly.  
“Well yes, but you see, I’m not religious and my neighbor asked me to come here and I had my thoughts elsewhere.” You explain quickly then lower your eyes in shame. “I’m sorry, this is probably not the thing preacher likes to hear.” You mutter but he only smiles.  
“First of all – you can call me Jesse. Second – do you struggle with faith or just plainly don’t believe?” He asks and you look at him thinking of your answer.  
“I used to believe but not anymore.” You admit. You feel like you can’t lie to Jesse. His eyes are dark and gentle while he looks at you.  
“What happened?” He asks in a hushed voice and you start playing with your fingers nervous for some reason.  
“My mother died.” You respond simply but Jesse leans to look at your face because you’re not facing him.   
“Tell me about her and I will tell you what I talked about in my sermon.” He offers you a deal and you look at him shocked, then smile.  
“This is cheating, Jesse.” You say and finally he smiles then shrugs.  
“Maybe. So, it’s a deal?”  
You sigh rolling your eyes.  
“Fine.” You agree and Jesse nods. “My mother was very religious. I was too because that’s how she raised me. I had no father because he ran away after my mom got pregnant. 4 years ago my mother was diagnosed with stage 4 liver cancer and died two months later. She was constantly in pain and she never stopped praying.” You turn your eyes from Jesse because you feel that rubber ball in the back of your throat that comes when you’re about to cry. You swallow hardly in hopes to make it vanish. “And then I just got angry. Just plainly angry. What God can allow this, right? That’s what I thought. My mother was a good person, she believed and lived in faith her whole life. And God let her die in so much pain.” You shrug and sigh. “If God’s so cruel then I don’t want to believe in such God.” You finish and silence falls. Somehow you feel easier. You never talked to anyone about your faith because you didn’t have anyone to talk to about it. Your mother was the only one who you trusted to keep your thoughts just between you two.  
“I am sure you were in a lot of pain, um…” Jesse gets confused. Only now he remembers that he never saw you before today and that he doesn’t know your name.  
“Y/N. Just call me Y/N.” You answer with a smile and Jesse nods to you.  
“Well Y/N, if you want to talk more about this you can always come to me.” He says with a smile. After that he briefly summarizes his sermon while you try to remember everything.  
“Preacher, can we talk?” A man show up at the front door and you and Jesse look at him.  
“I’ll be right there.” Jesse says and you stand up.  
“I should be going anyway. I still have a lot of unpacking hours ahead of me.”  
Jesse stands up too and pushes hands into his pockets but now there’s curiosity on his face.  
“Did you move to Annville recently?” He asks and you nod.  
“Yeah I did.”  
“How do you like it?”  
“I love it so far.” You move to the exit and notice that the man who called for Jesse is gone. He’s probably waiting outside. Jesse walks with you.  
“Are you going to come here again?” He asks as you stop by the exit and you smile to him.  
“I might.” You say and Jesse smiles to you but this time there’s nothing of a preacher in that smile.   
“Good. I’ll see you around then, Y/N.” He says and you nod.  
“See you too, preacher, um, I mean Jesse.” You chuckle and Jesse does too, then nods.  
You look at him then walk outside, stop a little further, wave to him after you look back and then get into your car.  
Jesse stands by the door with a smile on his face. Somehow he feels in a good mood.  
“Preacher, can we go inside?” The man walks to Jesse and he nods without looking at him.  
“Sure. Go ahead.” He steps from the entrance and man passes him, then Jesse turns and only stops watching your car drive away when you disappear from his view.  
Jesse finds it in himself that he hopes for you to return next Sunday.


End file.
